The fabrication of features with micrometric and nanometric dimensions is well known in the art, for example in the semiconductor fabrication art and more specifically in connection with the making of micromechanical and microelectromechanical systems. Successful fabrication of such features is dependent on the ability of the fabrication process to repeatedly produce the features with consistent dimensions and very tight tolerances. The process typically takes advantage of high resolution lithography and high-precision additive and subtractive material processing techniques. U.S. Pat. No. 7,582,490, incorporated herein by reference, teaches a method for controlled fabrication of gaps in electrically conducting structures in a precise and repeatable manner.
The size of an opening is typically fixed by the fabrication process and cannot be modulated. There is a need in the art for a process suitable to manufacture an opening (such as a gap, hole or pore) whose size may be modulated in a controlled manner.